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A review by caoilo
Bi The Way: The Bisexual Guide to Life by Lois Shearing
Did not finish book.
Thank you to Jessica Kingsley Publishers and Netgalley for the an e-book copy of this book.
Bi the Way is pitched to readers as "your essential guide to understanding and embracing bisexuality." The blurb gives the feeling of openness, understanding and acceptance.
Unfortunately I decided to DNF (Did not finish) this book. I was hopeful when I started as I was blown away by the Introduction but the book dived from there.
There were things I enjoyed about the book, the boxes that held personal experiences from other people were really emotional. The authors rants were not.
Yes I understand that the author has a right to rant but with one hand they were damning Bi erasure and with the other they undermined the Pan-sexual members of the community.
When they were talking of the injustices facing the Bi community I could feel myself becoming out ragged but a few lines later they would basically denied the need for the term Pan-sexual and then try to include the group later as to not be divisive. The author swung from inclusive to erasure.
As someone who identifies as Pan this was infuriating, I just wished they had chosen a view. Suddenly the fact that anyone like me is attracted to more than two genders is irrelevant. If that approach was given to sexuality in general there would be no LGBT+
I did learn some new information from the book that I hadn't known before. However after fifty or so pages I had enough of Shearing's hot footing it on and off support for Pan-sexual's and DNF''ed the book.
The imaginative cover and intriguing blurb were not enough to save the book for me. Perhaps if it had been more of other peoples experiences and information on the history of the Bi community and less of Shearing;s personal opinions I might have finished it. As it was though I was finding some parts interesting I struggled to want to read it.
I would suggest that only those who consider themselves Bi read this book. If I wanted to be told I am not what I think I am I would hang out with homophobic relatives.
Bi the Way is pitched to readers as "your essential guide to understanding and embracing bisexuality." The blurb gives the feeling of openness, understanding and acceptance.
Unfortunately I decided to DNF (Did not finish) this book. I was hopeful when I started as I was blown away by the Introduction but the book dived from there.
There were things I enjoyed about the book, the boxes that held personal experiences from other people were really emotional. The authors rants were not.
Yes I understand that the author has a right to rant but with one hand they were damning Bi erasure and with the other they undermined the Pan-sexual members of the community.
When they were talking of the injustices facing the Bi community I could feel myself becoming out ragged but a few lines later they would basically denied the need for the term Pan-sexual and then try to include the group later as to not be divisive. The author swung from inclusive to erasure.
As someone who identifies as Pan this was infuriating, I just wished they had chosen a view. Suddenly the fact that anyone like me is attracted to more than two genders is irrelevant. If that approach was given to sexuality in general there would be no LGBT+
I did learn some new information from the book that I hadn't known before. However after fifty or so pages I had enough of Shearing's hot footing it on and off support for Pan-sexual's and DNF''ed the book.
The imaginative cover and intriguing blurb were not enough to save the book for me. Perhaps if it had been more of other peoples experiences and information on the history of the Bi community and less of Shearing;s personal opinions I might have finished it. As it was though I was finding some parts interesting I struggled to want to read it.
I would suggest that only those who consider themselves Bi read this book. If I wanted to be told I am not what I think I am I would hang out with homophobic relatives.